Talk to marketers and they’ll have no problem describing their target market to you. Unfortunately, many don’t take that knowledge and use it to better understand their target audience when writing copy, blog posts or website pages.

If you don’t fully understand and consider the target audience for your marketing and sales materials, how can you expect those materials to succeed in attracting more business?

Here are some basics on better understanding your audience that will help you sharpen your focus.

Understanding Your Audience

We all know the type: He’s the one at the cocktail party or networking breakfast you can’t escape fast enough.

Why?

Because he’s going on and on about nothing that you care about.

Recently, a friend introduced me to a web developer, usually one of my favorite new contact categories. He heard what we do at Market It Write – and proceeded to educate me on search engine optimization.

I (politely) interrupted him and told him that, yes, I understood what he was saying. We partner with many web development firms to create sites that combine relevant content with social media tools to achieve high organic search engine rankings.

Next, he tried to explain how descriptive file names and page titles can also boost your site rankings.

Before he got too far into his lecture, I spilled my drink and dashed to the ladies room.

Not really. I was, however, sorely tempted.

Where did he go wrong?

To start, this prospective partner didn’t consider his audience before launching into his pitch. He has identified what sets him apart from other web designers and relentlessly steers networking conversations in his direction.

• He did not acknowledge the fact that I was educated in his area of expertise – essentially insulting my intelligence. (Hint: Not a good way to impress a prospective client.)
• He did not consider my needs and how his services could help fulfill those needs.
• In fact, he didn’t bother finding out much about me before starting his spiel.

This example sounds pretty silly and obvious, but many websites commit the same sins.

• Focus on the business or organization
• A generic message intended for all visitors
• Lackluster organization and content, showing little regard for audience needs

The fix?

If you’re still operating a simple brochure site that lists name, rank and serial number (About Us, Products/Services, Contact Us), you probably need to start from scratch. Largely because the technology has evolved so quickly that sophisticated web solutions are available for all budgets.

To avoid making the same mistakes, ask yourself the following questions:

• Who are my target audiences?
• Why are they coming to my site?
• How can I make their lives better?

Answer these questions, and watch your online marketing ROI increase. If you need some help, we’re only a phone call or email away.

Have you ever found yourself in a similar situation? How did you respond? (For the truly brave, have you ever found yourself on the wrong end of this situation? How did you recover?)

The Myers-Briggs Temperament Test is an increasingly popular way to identify what makes a person tick. The Myers-Briggs Test, originally developed in the 1950s, is now used worldwide to identify patterns of behavior and attitude. The expansion of the test’s popularity has been spurred in large part by Dr. David Keirsey, who refined and expanded the Myers-Briggs types in his books, Please Understand Me and Please Understand Me II.

Human temperament theory states the following: all individuals can be categorized as one of four basic personality types. These personality types can each be broken down into four sub-types based on introversion/extroversion and the person’s preferred role as leader/follower, but those sub-types are irrelevant to the core values of the main types. Each holds a specific core value–the thing that drives people of that type.

Artisan (Sensing Perceiving – SP). There are many Artisans, perhaps 35-40% of the population. Artisans want to be excited, stimulated, to make an impact on the world.  They trust their impulses and aspire to virtuosity in their chosen field.

Guardian (Sensing Judging – SJ). Guardians are the most common, making up roughly 40-45% of the population. They are concerned about their lives, families, communities, responsibilities. They trust authority and seek security and belonging.

Idealist (Intuitive Feeling – NF). Idealists are rare, making up no more than 8-10% of the population. They are enthusiastic and romantic, seeking self-discovery and recognition of their efforts. They help others, and in so doing walk the path to enlightenment.

Rational (Intuitive Thinking – NT). Rationals are even more scarce, comprising as little as 5-7% of the population. They are calm, collected, trusting their reason and intellectual capacity. They live their lives in search of knowledge, fascinated by the systems that drive the universe.

With this basic knowledge, a good copywriter can craft a message to appeal to  all these types, or even more specifically to those types most likely to be interested in the message. One can develop marketing messages to maximize impact on certain personality types, or include hooks to appeal broadly to all four. Most of the hooks that will work on a Guardian will not likely work on an Idealist, because each type is driven by different internal forces.

One general difference between the types is that Artisans and Guardians operate most comfortably, and respond most favorably, to concrete things, such as tools, results, real-world things. Idealists and Rationals, on the other hand, are more likely to respond to abstract things, such as holistic concepts or systems.

Your job as a marketer is to craft a compelling message, and human temperament theory can be an absolutely priceless tool in your inventory.

How do you visualize your target audience when crafting copy? Are you a Myers-Briggs fan? Do you use a different approach? Please share what works for you.

Source: Keirsey, David. Please Understand Me II: Temperament, Character, Intelligence. Del Mar: Prometheus Nemesis. 1998.

Does anyone write letters anymore? We have e-mail, text messaging, social media web sites, and the soul of communicational brevity, Twitter. With all these other forms of communication, do we still need to know how to write a good letter? Whether you’re seeking employment, trying to sell widgets, or contacting business associates, now, more than ever, a good letter can raise you above the crowd. The quickest way to disqualify yourself from consideration from a world of business opportunities is to not know how to write an effective letter.

1. In business or marketing communications, the cardinal commandment is this: Know Thy Audience. Don’t even start writing without a firm vision of whom you’re writing to. As a general rule, it’s nearly always more effective to be more formal, at least until a clear personal relationship is established. “Dear Mr. Jones:” versus “Hey Jim,” or even “What’s up J-Dawg?” Courtesy toward an employment superior or a potential sales prospect still goes a long way. Tailor the voice of your communication to your audience, and remember that your letter represents you. What kind of impression would you like to convey?
2. Margins, line spacing, position of the date, address blocks, salutation lines, all have long-established parameters for what is acceptable. Reference books abound, describing the intricacies of letters. Nowadays, software generally takes care of those things with templates, but some formats are more formal or traditional than others. A standard business letter most often uses block format, where all paragraphs, salutations, date, and address blocks are left-justified with a double space between each element and no indentation.
3. For print letters, use a serif font (fonts with the little curly-cues, called serifs on the letters), such as Times New Roman, Garamond, or Courier. As a general rule, do not use sans serif fonts (fonts without serifs) like Arial, Trebuchet, or Calibri for print letters. Sans serif fonts are generally viewed as too informal and are more tiring to read. For easy reading, your audience will also thank you if you use 12 pt.
4. When in doubt, check the reference books. If you don’t have one handy, the Purdue Online Writing Lab (Purdue OWL, http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/) is a fantastic web resource for all kinds of writing questions, including letter writing formats.

Does all this seem pretty basic? That’s because it is. But managers, professionals, and business people everywhere can tell you stories about how so many people don’t know these bare basics. Do you?

Culture evolves and language evolves with it. Words that worked in 1950 will not necessarily work in the 21^st century. The following list of words seize the attention of your audience–whether your audience is sales prospects, potential donors, or voters–and elicit powerful internal responses with American audiences. In the direction our culture is evolving, these words will hold up for decades to come.

Casual elegance – Americans are a casual people. We call each other by our first names, wear jeans, embrace egalitarian ideals, and eschew formality. But we don’t want to think of ourselves as sloppy either, or shoddy. We enjoy life’s pleasures, however simple they might be. We might not always want to be sophisticated, but elegance connotes comfort, grace and timeless beauty. This phrase shows people that elegance can be enjoyed by casual folks.

Efficient – In a world where environmentalism and “green” enterprises are a growing trend, efficient and its noun equivalent, efficiency, are words that are closely tied to ideas of energy conservation and wise use of resources, but without the stodginess of those words. Moreover, efficiency is often achieved by innovation in technology and processes, lending this word a double impact. Such language appeals to audiences especially if they want to consider themselves ecologically conscientious.

Imagine – This could well be the king of powerful words. The word itself is a non-threatening command to allow the audience to create their own imagery. The key to any effective persuasion is to allow the audience the space to come over to your side, to let their own minds draw them in. If your writing can capture your audience’s imagination–and lead it–they’re more likely to follow you and your message.

Independent – America was founded on a Declaration of Independence. We pride ourselves on our individuality, our pioneer spirit, our ability to handle things, to do it our own way. If you can make your audience feel more independent, that doing things your way, buying your product, or just listening to your message will let them express their own individualistic attitudes, or cast off their unwanted ties and obligations, your message will have their full attention.

Innovation – In the 21^st century, the world is changing so fast that the future is already here. With every scientific advancement, we are reminded of how cool the future could be. Innovation connotes advancement, efficiency, improvement, smaller (or bigger, as the case may be), lighter, better, tougher, cheaper. It ties in closely with boldness, pioneer spirit, and independence.

Lifestyle – We choose to define ourselves through the multitude of small choices that we make every day, to arrange the trappings and activities of our lives to create how we view ourselves. It represents our individualism, our independence. We all want to live our vision of “the good life,” and the notion of shaping our lifestyle gives audiences a sense of potential, of empowerment. This is critical for building those bridges you want your audience to cross.

Peace of Mind – This phrase connotes the idea of security, but without the politicization that has come to be associated with that word. It’s kinder, softer, with positive results in mind. We want our lifestyles to be free from worry, fear, or drama. Peace of mind is the result of all the effort or unpleasant things that might have to happen first. It lets the audience imagine the happy ending.

Source: Luntz, Frank. Words that Work: It’s not What You Say, It’s What People Hear. New York: Hyperion. 2007.

At its essence, marketing is a form of persuasion used to convince the audience to “buy” something, whether they’re buying a product, or a service, or an idea, or ideology. Selling anything requires persuasion, and persuasion is both science and art.

The ancient Greeks developed persuasion and argument into a science and an art, beginning with Socrates and Aristotle. These ancient thinkers and their students created an entire school of thought around methods of persuasion, focusing on three concepts, all of which are necessary for effective persuasion (i.e., marketing).

Pathos represents appeals to the audience’s emotions, their sympathies, their imagination, their wants and needs. The use of pathos is the emotional hook that draws the audience in. A good marketing writer knows how to capture and lead the audience’s imagination to make them want something.

Logos is the root of the word “logic,” representing reason and rationality. Persuasion by the use of logos comes from the use of data and statistics, hard facts, logic and reason. Such things are effective because refuting them is difficult. Using logos not only makes a more persuasive pitch, but also enhances the writer’s credibility, his ethos (see below), because it makes him look as if he knows what he is talking about. This is where an effective writer will help the audience rationalize their desire, to make it easy (and okay) for them to go ahead and commit to buy, to call, to click.

Ethos is the root of the word “ethics,” and on one hand means “moral character.” However, the meaning was broadened to encompass credibility, competence, and knowledge. As any good marketer knows, establishing one’s credibility with the audience is absolutely essential. It is the bridge built by which the writer allows the audience to cross over to her side.

Combining all three of these audience appeals makes for some powerful persuasion. If any are missing, the argument, the editorial, the sales letter, the ad, will fall flat like a two-legged stool. The fact that these concepts were developed more than 2,000 years ago just goes to show that there’s nothing new under the sun, just ways to repackage old truths.

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I tried to drag Uncle Jim to see The Lion King on Broadway. He wasn’t interested. He threw his beer can at me and said he’d rather watch the game.

My brother hates sushi. He says he’d rather eat worms.

My mom loves to cook. My dad can’t even locate the kitchen.

My point? People have different tastes… different interests. And there’s no way you can appeal to all of them. I’ll clarify. You can’t appeal to everyone. Get it?

If you try to, here’s a quick story about what happens:

Setting: Touristy beach town. Restaurants: Hundreds. And every one of them served a plethora of cuisines: Italian, Mexican, Indian, Greek, steaks, burgers, Chinese and more. As you might guess, NONE of their culinary attempts was very good. (Believe me, I tried everything.) By trying to offer everything to everybody, these restaurants ended up serving bland, uninspired, confused food. And I started shopping and cooking for myself.

6 Reasons Why “Everybody” Is Not Your Ideal Customer

1. When you try to satisfy “everybody,” you weaken your quality (e.g., the blandest paella I’ve ever had).
2. “Everybody” is fickle. You can’t possibly begin to guess what “everybody” wants. But you can guess what your ideal customer wants. If you know who they are, you know what they read, watch and listen to. You know what they need – and you know what compels them to buy. You know what keeps them coming back.
3. You can’t use specialized language with “everybody.”
4. You have to be broad to impress “everybody.” But by being broad, you turn people off. People know impersonal when they see it. People want to feel catered to, understood.
5. If you try to market to “everybody,” you could spend millions and get nowhere.
6. Loyal customers are deeply attracted and deeply connected. To make meaningful connections, you need insight. You can’t have insight into “everybody.”

Here’s the deal… No matter how hard I try, I’m never going to get Uncle Jim to see The Lion King, my brother to eat sushi, or my dad to cook. These things simply are not going to happen. So marketing musical theatre, spicy tuna rolls or Tupperware to any of these people is simply a waste of time, energy and money.

Don’t waste your time, energy and money on trying to market to everybody. Everybody is not your audience.

Who is? Figure it out, and talk to them. Listen to them. Market to them.

If you need help pinpointing them, or speaking in their language, we can help. Contact us and start targeting your market.

Gender differences abound. Obvious, right? Feminism and equality aside, failing to recognize that women write and respond to writing differently than men is a recipe for ineffective communication. Nevertheless, it is important to recognize that the following differences are generalities; women are no more alike among themselves as men are.
Difference #1 – Trust. Women are more trusting of authority than men, generally speaking. According to Dr. Frank Luntz, an influential pollster, author, and speaker, “Women typically put more faith in government than men.”

Difference #2 – Language. Linguistic studies show that women write softer, more polite language and respond more favorably to it. Short, direct, in-your-face text is designed to appeal to men, and is more likely to turn women off.

Difference #3 – Lifestyle. Family status and employment status are the single most important factors to consider when writing something that appeals to women. The questions for marketers to ask: 1) Does our female audience have children at home? 2) Do they work full-time?

Stay-at-home moms are much more likely to respond similarly to each other, than to working career women, regardless of age.

“Men are exactly the opposite,” writes Dr. Luntz. “Family status and career barely matter, while age, income, and education matter considerably.” Furthermore, men have a narrower range of opinions than women. Luntz goes on to say that a “thirty-year-old man is far more likely to share attitudes and opinions with a fifty-year-old man than are women with the same age spread.”

Difference #4 – Decision Making. Look back again at employment and family status. Men make a majority of decisions for themselves. On the other hand, women typically make financial or consumer decisions not only for herself, but also for her significant other, for her children, and sometimes even for her parents. This boils down to the fact that women are making major pocketbook decisions, from home buying to grocery shopping, and marketers would do well to keep this in mind. Women have more control over family finances than ever before.

Source: Words That Work: It’s Not What You Say, It’s What People Hear by Dr. Frank Luntz, Hyperion, 2007.

What are your thoughts? Have you experienced other differences in your marketing efforts? Leave a comment!

Whether your line of work is business or politics, it pays to know your audience. The world is full of businesses that failed because they did not know their audience. If you don’t, your message, however finely crafted it might be, will be ineffective because it did not appeal. Here are a few facts to dispel some myths about general audience.
Myth #1 – Americans are highly educated

Wrong. According to the U.S. Census in 2008, only 29% of adults over the age of 25 have any college education. Furthermore, almost of 15% of the adult population has not graduated from high school.

Therefore, if you’re writing for a general consumer audience, how do you think these facts should affect your approach? Short sentences and easy words. Simplicity is the key.

Myth #2 – Americans prefer big organizations

The truth is, in America, Big Anything becomes a target for distrust. Individuals feel insignificant in the face of mega-banks and conglomerates. American distrust of large organizations runs deep throughout its history. Public outcry against such large-organization fiascos as Enron, Worldcom, and Fannie Mae are vociferous and visceral.

The key for marketers in such large organizations, therefore, is to overcome this distrust through language, such as United Airlines’ “Fly the Friendly Skies.” Make the audience believe that the organization is on their side.

Myth #3 – Retro sells

Companies that have been around for a long time often bring out the old stuff, commercials and taglines from decades past. The feelings of nostalgia evoked in their audience might be pleasant, and retro styling sometimes attracts attention, but people don’t want products from forty years ago. They want 21^st century products and 21^st century ideas. American audiences look forward, not back.

This does not mean to say that old products and ideas are bad; however, never present them as old products and ideas. Renew them, revitalize them, and present them as fresh.

Source: Words That Work: It’s Not What You Say, It’s What People Hear by Dr. Frank Luntz, Hyperion, 2007.

U.S. Census Bureau – www.census.gov

Please don’t misunderstand my title. I’m in favor of customizing the audience’s online marketing experience. Just ask any of our clients. We always recommend ways to tailor content to the specific needs and interests of their target market.

What we don’t advocate, however, is insulting the audience‘s intelligence in the process.

Like millions of other people around the world, I waste several hours a week on Facebook. This online community typically does a great job of using my personal preferences to show me ads that interest me.

Do I want to know about the upcoming fiction workshop in New York with Robert McKee? You bet. Would I like to join a new group for caramel lovers? Why not?

But am I really going to click on an ad because females in New Jersey of a specific age are eligible for a $500 gift card at the local discount chain? No way.

And it’s not because of a bias against discount chains. A similar ad from my favorite clothing retailer evokes an equally negative response.

Using my personal information to grab my attention when it has no relevance to your offer is a cheap ploy. It makes me wonder, do you really think I’m that dumb?

Maybe it works, and that’s why I keep seeing half a dozen of these ads every time I log on for my Farmville fix.

We recommend a different approach to customizing content: one that respects the audience and offers real value.